In a bid to push online transactions, now Reserve Bank of India (RBI) has allowed National Electronic Funds Transfer (NEFT) facility available for 24 hours a day and 365 days a year. Earlier, one could transfer only on the days that the bank was open and in between 8 am and 6:30 pm.

From today, all NEFT transactions done after banking hours will be automated using ‘Straight Through Processing (STP)’ modes by the banks. Even though now NEFT facility is available round the clock, the existing procedure of crediting the beneficiary’s account or returning the transaction within 2 hours of settlement to originating bank will continue and a confirmation message will be sent for all NEFT credits.

How it will work?

NEFT transfers timing cycle will function round-the-clock and the settlement will happen every half an hour starting 12.30 am and the last batch will end at midnight.

Almost all major banks such as the State Bank of India, ICICI Bank and HDFC Bank do not charge anything for online NEFT transfers. While there is no minimum limit for NEFT transfer but there is an upper cap for funds that can be transferred via NEFT and it varies from bank to bank.

For example, ICICI Bank allows NEFT transfers up to ₹10 lakh for most customers but for others, it may allow NEFT transactions up to ₹25 lakh. HDFC Bank, too, has a ₹25 lakh limit for online NEFT transactions. SBI has a ₹10 lakh limit for retail customers.